The Vespers

The Vespers
Origin	Nashville, Tennessee, United States
Genres	Americana, Folk, Roots
Years active	2009–present
Labels	unsigned
Members	Callie Cryar Phoebe Cryar Bruno Jones Taylor Jones
Website	thevespersband.com

The Vespers are an americana/folk/roots band from Nashville, TN. The band is made up of two brothers, Taylor and Bruno Jones, and two sisters, Callie and Phoebe Cryar. Bruno plays upright bass, a little banjo, ukulele, and mandolin. He is also their manager. Taylor Jones plays drums, percussion, vocals, and mandolin. Callie plays guitar, ukulele, banjo, electric bass, lead vocals and low harmony. Phoebe plays guitar, banjo, accordion, mandolin, ukulele, lead vocals and low harmony. Following on from Bruno and Taylor's rock trio called Fuel to the Fire, with the brothers rock prowess and the sisters' vocal exchange and pure harmonies that have been described as “two angels”, “ghostly and haunting”, “honey sweet” and “serene”, the quartet created a sound so unique it is called "magnificently unforgettable" and "fresh and infectious".

History

"The word is defined as "evening prayer." Phoebe ran across it in while reading a book from literature class in her senior year of high school. Like the Cryars, the band's name was distinctive and, Callie said, "easy to remember." Done deal."

All four members were born and raised in Nashville. Callie and Phoebe, daughters of Christian artist Morgan Cryar, sang background vocals on Music Row from a young age. Taylor and Bruno had grown up influenced heavily by their father's music collection, which included everything from gritty southern rock to soul. The two sets of siblings met each other at a mutual friend's campfire. In May 2009, the four came together and played for the first time, originally just playing songs that the Cryar sisters had written. "Things progressed in a way that none of us really could have predicted," says Callie. "We knew that it was an intriguing sound, and we liked what was happening," adds Bruno. By the following winter, they made their first record, Tell Your Mama, and released it in March 2010. The record was received with critical acclaim. It is "a blend of bluegrass, folk, & alternative music all held together tightly by Callie & Phoebe’s angelic harmonies & Taylor & Bruno’s hypnotic rhythms."

They spent the rest of 2010 touring "anywhere people would let [them]," and this continued into 2011. In the beginning of 2011, they began to think about their next record, writing most of their songs while on the road. They recorded the new music in two pieces, during breaks from touring in May and August 2011, with the help of producers Anderson East and Daniel Scobey. This second record, The Fourth Wall was released on April 3, 2012. The 'fourth wall' refers to the invisible wall between the performers and the audience, and the band's goal is to break down that wall with each show.

Members

Bruno Jones - upright bass, banjo, ukulele, mandolin, manager

Taylor Jones - drums, percussion, vocals, mandolin

Callie Cryar - guitar, ukulele, banjo, electric bass, lead vocals, low harmony, session vocalist

Phoebe Cryar - guitar, banjo, accordion (Betty White), mandolin, ukulele, lead vocals, low harmony, session vocalist, merch table extraordinaire, leader of Grinnin' dance movement of 2012

Crew

Management: Bring It Music, Bruno Jones (Manager) Caitie Merz (Intern)

Radio: Jeff Appleton (Marathon Entertainment)

Booking: Clint Simpson, Everystep Touring

Press: Kim Fowler, Two Dog Media

Licensing: Jessica Garey, Firefly Music

College Booking: W2 Entertainment

Christian Press: Jenn dePaula, Mixtus Media

Distribution: Shawn Fowler, Tone Tree Music

In the Media

The Vespers have been profiled by The Huffington Post.